Remote Sensing Research Reveals Vulnerability of Ecosystem Services in Arid Inland Regions

Research on remote sensing has shed light on the coupling coordination relationship between ecosystem services supply-demand and human well-being in arid inland regions. The study, conducted by researchers at Qufu Normal University, found that the relationship between ecosystem services and human well-being in the Hexi Regions of Northwest China is increasingly vulnerable to imbalance risks due to climate change and anthropogenic activities. The researchers assessed the dynamic changes in ecosystem services supply-demand, human well-being, and their coupling relationships, and identified influencing factors and paths of the coupling relationship between ecosystem services supply-demand and human well-being.

Key Takeaways:

• The study found that the six key ecosystem services supply, demand, and ESDR in the Hexi Regions from 1990 to 2020 exhibited greater ecosystem services surplus in the Qilian Mountains and stronger deficits in urban and surrounding areas of the Hexi Corridor.
• The deficit of water yield accounted for 32% in the Hexi Corridor, four times that of the Qilian Mountains, indicating a serious supply-demand mismatch in space and time.
• Survival-oriented human well-being across regions is still dominant.
• The coupling relationship between ESDR and human well-being in the Hexi Regions progressed towards a high level of coordination, with higher values observed in the oases of the Hexi Corridor and the central and eastern Qilian Mountains.
• Climate, vegetation, and land use intensity were key drivers of spatial heterogeneity in CCD.
• Human well-being made a greater contribution to CCD than other elements in the influence paths.

Statistics:

• The ESDR of food production and water yield showed a higher coupling coordination level with human well-being in the Qilian Mountains, where the CCD was generally exceeded by 0.7.
• The water yield deficit accounted for 32% in the Hexi Corridor, four times that of the Qilian Mountains.

Sources:

• Influencing Factors and Paths of the Coupling Relationship Between Ecosystem Services Supply-Demand and Human Well-Being in the Hexi Regions, Northwest China. Remote Sensing, 2025, 17(10): 1787.
• MDPI AG, publisher of Remote Sensing
• https://doi-org.sdpl.idm.oclc.org/10.3390/rs17101787
• NewsRx LLC, Original Release June 13, 2025

Note: The citation for this news report is: NewsRx. Researchers at Qufu Normal University Publish New Data on Remote Sensing (Influencing Factors and Paths of the Coupling Relationship Between Ecosystem Services Supply-Demand and Human Well-Being in the Hexi Regions, Northwest China). Ecology, Environment & Conservation. June 13, 2025; p 580.